The modern construction era has brought about a tremendous expansion of the use of technology and computers in connection with designing and building structures of all types. Building Information Modeling (BIM), which is an accurate computer generated representation of a building, is one area that has fueled the expansion of the integration of computers into areas such as building design. In this regard, BIM may be used to increase the productivity and capability of architects and draftsmen to design buildings and produce corresponding engineering drawings and other downstream deliverables. These deliverables can then be easily modified and regenerated by revising the original model.
Production builders are one example of an industry segment that benefits from the advantages that can be offered by BIM. In this regard, for example, production builders typically build a relatively large number of houses from a set of basic plans and then provide various options for buyers to implement according to their budget and desires. Production builders typically receive input from consumers on options they desire and incorporate the options into the building process.
The original plans for a given house may begin with an architect that is responsible for producing the original design. Architects often use computer software to generate their architectural designs. In some cases the architect may use a computer aided design (CAD) application such as, for example, AutoCAD® or another similar application, to prepare design plans. The design plans may then be passed on to engineers (e.g., structural engineers) who may use a different software application to produce trusses, panels, and other structural features that will realize the design prepared by the architect. The structural engineers often use different software applications than those used by architects and therefore generate different file formats for their work on the same building the architect designed.
The structural engineer may design panels, trusses or other structural components and pass those design plans on to manufacturers (e.g., truss or panel builders) who will use the design plans to construct the corresponding structural components. In some cases, the manufacturers may use their own software applications to facilitate their production activities. Accordingly, there may be a number of levels at which different software applications are used to operate on data that is essentially associated with the same building or project.
Currently, there is no full integration of work flow from concept to production. As such, downstream operators typically conform their applications to import material from a level above and modify it for their use. Thus, there is only limited interaction between the levels and such interaction is only in one direction (i.e., top-down) among immediately adjacent levels. Accordingly, there is no file format that is useable at each level and there is no mechanism for feedback to be provided in a reverse direction (i.e., from production to design).